PCOS is a very common disorder of ovulation in women. Dr. Ratcliffe has a particular interest in PCOS and has been very successful over the past decade in its treatment.
A few facts about PCOS:
- It has NOTHING to do with CYSTS – this is just an old, bad name that hasn’t been replaced
- You have to have irregular periods – less than 8 a year to have it
- There are many different causes, thus TREATMENT must be individualized for each patient
- Blood tests do NOT diagnose PCOS
The goal of treatment is to get you ovulating regularly so you can get pregnant!
Metformin
Sometimes this simply means helping you to lose weight. We use a medication called Metformin and a special diet to do this. If that isn’t successful, two other medications can be added:
Clomiphene Citrate (Clomid)
Clomid is an pill that blocks estrogen receptors and results in the production of more FSH from your pituitary. This helps your ovary to grow follicle(s) and release eggs.
Injectable Gonadotropins (FSH)
The medications directly cause the growth of follicles (that contain eggs) in the ovaries. We will teach you how to inject the medication every night.
